Intertwined ON HOLD
by KorolevaRezni
Summary: Aella and Muu have known each other for years under the guidance and protection of Reim's magi, Lady Scheherazade, and have always been too busy trying to do their utmost for their country to think about themselves, let alone a love life. Fate pushes them together time and time again, and soon, they find that what they had together has always been more than just friendship.
1. Capitolo Primo (I)

**Capitolo Primo (I):** **Bentornato A Casa |** _ **Welcome Home**_

Along the golden streets of the Reim Empire walked a slender figure, her ebony locks contrasting greatly against the golden hues of those belonging to the people around her. She found herself in a bustling marketplace, clear silvery blue eyes scanning the piece of paper in her hands and then glancing upwards. Her confusion was evident in the slight downward tilt of her lips and creased eyebrows as she continued to looks from left to right and back again, evidently trying to look for something in particular from her spot amidst the throng of gold. Taking one last glance at the paper - which was apparently a map, given the many lines and names of some landmarks - the figure began moving once again, trying to get away from all the bumps and glares she received from just standing in the middle of the busy street.

The figure soon found herself walking into an alley that - although was well-lit - was incredibly quiet and isolated in comparison to her previous surroundings. She continued to look down at her map, which was obviously poorly drawn, as ebony strands began to fall over her slightly tanned shoulders

"Is this even the right way?," she mumbled to herself, clearly frustrated at her inability to decipher the written puzzle in her hands. She honestly could not understand how one person could mess up a map so badly. In spite of her verbalized reluctance and uncertainty she continued down the alleyway in hopes that it really _was_ the right way.

After walking along her route for a couple of minutes, she developed a vague impression that she was being followed. The ravenette attempted to continue going her way, but she couldn't shake the feeling away.

She promptly felt her pulse begin to increase in her unspoken panic once she heard footsteps behind her - only to turn around and find nothing and no one.

' _What the hell…'_ she furrowed her eyebrows as she quickly turned back around and quickened her pace. The blue-eyed woman was in no mood to get ambushed or robbed in an alley, seeing as it seemed far too typical for her tastes. If something were to happen to her, at least make it more interesting. However, more importantly, the woman simply just wasn't prepared to defend herself at the moment. She also had somewhere she needed to be. Somewhere she _wanted_ to be.

Her quickened pace eventually became a run as she continued to hear footsteps that were successive to her own. Once again, she found no one behind her as she turned around in panic. _'Why is this happening to me?'_ she groaned dejectedly.

Her breathing became labored as she approached a corner, _'Damn it, I_ really _hate running!'_ she thought in between her pants and worried glances that she shot over her shoulder.

However, while she was glancing over her shoulder, she failed to notice the large figure that suddenly appeared in front of her as she rounded a corner. She gasped as a powerful force pulled her in towards the large figure, holding her tightly.

The new figure quickly noticed that she was about to scream, and quickly covered her mouth with a large hand, rendering her voice inaudible. Knowing that there was no way that she would allow herself to die like this, the woman forcibly stretched out her arms that had previously been sandwiched between her and her captor's bodies. She attempted to push her captor away and maybe even beat him up if given the chance. The woman figured that her uninvited guest had to be a man due to their large physique and obvious strength. Nonetheless, her attempts to remove herself from her captor's tight grasp ended in vain, in spite of her optimistic and stubborn attempts.

Her body froze when she felt the man's body shake against her as he chuckled lowly. _'Oh my god...This guy is actually enjoying this?!'_ she thought it horror. She reached up to her neck as she focused her strength in her other arm, continuing to push against her attacker. Her movements stopped short, however, as the man's chuckles soon became loud laughs. The ravenette instinctively placed both hands against the man's chest in preparation to run away. However, her eyes widened as she recognized the deep, yet smooth, voice as she slowly looked up to face the man.

"Calm down Aella, it's just me," the voice said in between laughs. Aella's jaw dropped as her "captor" looked down at her with an amused smile. She slowly dropped her hands from his chest and placed them limply at her sides.

The ravenette proceeded to take a step back, as the man loosened his firm grip on her upper arms. She stared at the man in front of her in shock, as she took in his appearance. Red hair and red eyes with distinctive markings. A piercing below his lower lip. A tall, muscular frame covered in typical golden gladiator armor.

There was no doubt about it. The man in front of her was none other than - "Muu…" Aella breathed out, slowly letting her realization sink in. He looked...different since the last time she saw him. A lot more different than she expected.

Muu simply laughed once again, not taking note of her shocked state of mind as he tilted his head back in amusement. "You would think that you would've gotten better at running after being away for ten years, but apparently not!" he teased. This quickly snapped Aella out of her daze as her hands clenched into a fist and she grit her teeth.

"Well _excuse me_ if it hadn't been a priority of mine while I was gone," she huffed, "And why run when you don't have to," she mumbled stubbornly. Aella's head suddenly snapped up after a couple seconds as she recalled what Muu had first said to her.

She pointed an accusing finger at him as she pushed away from him, his hands sliding of her arms. "Also! What do you mean ' _calm down_ '?! Who the _hell_ would be _calm_ in a situation like that!" she exclaimed incredulously.

The redhead raised his hands in defense, trying to calm her down as he chuckled at her fiery attitude. "I wasn't _trying_ to chase you, Aella. Well...not _exactly_ anyway. I was just trying to find you since I figured that you'd probably get lost, and I wasn't sure if you were... _you_ , so I wanted to keep my distance just in case," Muu explained cheekily.

Aella gave Muu a look that clearly said "Are you _stupid_?" as she stared at him in exasperation.

The woman sighed as she ran a hand through her hair to calm herself down, closing her eyes as she did so. Upon opening her eyes, she took in the appearance of the grinning man in front of her once again. It had been ten years since she just saw him. _Ten_. And here he was, taller than her, more muscular, and just... _bigger_. It's crazy to see when all she had in her head was a small, stubborn, red-headed boy for the last few years. She had to admit that if he walked past her on the street, she probably wouldn't have recognized him. So she had to say that she understood Muu's reasoning to that extent at least.

Not that she would tell him that.

"Well, whatever", she sighed, "But I'll have you know that I wouldn't have gotten lost if it weren't for your crappy map," she smirked, raising a challenging eyebrow.

"It wasn't _that_ crappy," he lazily tried to defend himself. He grinned at Aella knowingly in spite of her defiant stare. After years of knowing Aella, Muu knew that she was changing the subject to preserve her pride. He considered teasing her about it, but eventually decided that the costs outweighed the benefits.

"You almost made it to the destination anyway," Muu smiled and pointed to a building in the near distance. Muu saw the relief wash over Aella's tired eyes, obviously happy that she didn't have to work her body any more than she already had since arriving in Reim. Soon she'd be _home_.

The Fanalis had sent a map he had drawn that charted a route from the docks to Lady Scheherazade's palace - their home - to the ship that would be bringing Aella back for her to use once she arrived. While Aella had been away, Lady Scheherazade decided that it would be better to move the palace to the port city of Napolia from the capital, Romano, to ensure that the Reim people could control their own paths.

"That's great to hear," Aella smiled gently, "but what are you doing out here looking for me? You're usually always by Lady Scheherazade's side, aren't you?"

Upon hearing his Magi's name, Muu's relaxed disposition turned serious. He had forgotten about the message he was instructed to give Aella once she arrived.

"Lady Scheherazade wants an immediate audience with you to discuss what you discovered in the Kingdom of Sindria and the Kou Empire."


	2. Capitolo Due (II)

**Capitolo Due (II):** **Il Guardiano** _ **| The Guardian**_

" _Lady Scheherazade wants an immediate audience with you to discuss what you discovered in the Kingdom of Sindria and the Kou Empire."_

Aella couldn't get the phrase out of her head as she and Muu made their way to the palace. It had been a couple minutes since he had said that, but the deepening of his voice and the darkening of his eyes was still the focus of her mind. The lightly tanned woman's eyebrows knitted together as she chewed on her lip, _'Does Lady Scheherazade know what happened? Oh who am I kidding, of course she does! She's a Magi for crying out loud'_ , she rolled her eyes at herself and put two fingers to her temple to keep herself from facepalming.

' _But…does Muu know?'_ Aella contemplated the chances that Lady Scheherazade had told Muu as she glanced at him from the corner of her , before she could process what she had just wondered, let alone entertain the thought, they had reached the palace.

Aella was, to say the least, impressed with how the ivory stone of which was used to build the tall columns and the building itself, made it look like the palace was shimmering in the fading light of the setting sun, creating an almost heavenly glow. And upon further inspection, Aella could see that it was fashioned to look similar to the houses that the majority of Reim's people owned, portraying Lady Scheherazade's place _within_ the people, not at all above them. The newly built palace represented the splendor and radiance that Lady Scheherazade personified, along with the modest ideals she believed in.

It's because of these ideals that Aella believed that Lady Scheherazade was one of the most respectable magis to have ever been bestowed upon humanity. It was not simply out of sheer patriotism that she felt this way, but it for the Magi's ability to have complete control over the people, but chose to let them control themselves. In her eyes, Lady Scheherazade, with her divine powers and innate position of authority, was so much _more_. She wasn't some tyrant who abused her power, nor was she a self-crowned monarch. The high position she sat in as High Priestess of the Reim Empire was a position that _humans_ had so fervently wanted her to have out of love and reverence, not one she gave herself in order to broadcast her irrefutable belief in her people is what led Aella to decide to remain in Reim when she was given the choice to leave.

A small smile graced upon Aella's lips at the thought of Lady Scheherazade, which only grew larger when she spotted her at the top of the stairs. Aella nearly sprinted up the stairs as Muu followed close behind, albeit seemingly at a leisurely pace. Once they reached the top, the captain of the Fanalis Corps bowed down onto one knee gracefully, Aella following suit soon after

"Lady Scheherazade", they both said, lowering their heads. The subject of their respect sent a curious glance towards Muu, a thought occurring to her. Fully looking back at their bent forms, she gestured for them to rise, speaking as the two youths leveled themselves with the Magi.

"You've been away for quite some time, Aella", Lady Scheherazade stated lightly, a small smile playing on her child-like features.

"Yes," Aella beamed up at her "but I'm finally back, Mother."

Of course "Mother" didn't refer to their shared blood, but rather their bond to each other. And seeing as Aella was twenty-seven and Lady Scheherazade was hundreds of years old -with her _real_ body so heavily affected by the passage of time- it was simply impossible for her to bear a child; equally impossible, Aella was clearly not a clone with her black hair and silver-blue eyes. Lady Scheherazade was more of her guardian, having taken Aella into her care upon finding her abandoned in the streets of Reim twenty-one years ago, but was called "Mother" during special occasions or affectionate moments on Aella's part.

For the past ten years, Aella had been traveling around the world, searching for nothing in particular but everything all at the same time. Being sheltered and growing up without knowing who she was or where she came from for twelve years played a big part in her decision to journey around the world. So, at seventeen years of age, Aella was called to an audience with Lady Scheherazade who gave her the choice to stay in Reim or to leave in order to find her "truths". Thus, she asked for a compromise between the two: to travel for a couple years in order to see beyond the walls of the palace and the borders of the empire, but she soon found that seeing the world in all its wonder and horror would take much longer.

She delved deep into the different cultures and languages almost immediately after setting foot into foreign lands, particularly Sindria and Kou. Aella had always had a love for the way people could believe in so many different things, yet remain roughly the same person as the next. She had a deep appreciation for these differences because they made people unique and not uniform, but she wasn't foolish enough to believe that others would feel that way. However, despite knowing that, Aella wasn't prepared to see just how much differences pulled people apart from each other.


	3. Capitolo Tre (III)

**Capitolo Tre (III)** **: Un Giorno In Piu |** _ **One Day More**_

Compromise. As defined, it is an agreement or a settlement of a dispute that is reached by each side making concessions. _Each side._ Aella's journey _had_ been a compromise.

On her side of the agreement she was allowed to venture out into the world to do some soul searching, however, seeing as she had no natural ties to the Reim Empire, the Council argued against an answer that didn't respond to the two choices they had given her of leaving for good or staying for good. Thus, in secret the Council had ordered her to do surveillance on the legendary Kingdom of Sindria and the fast-developing Kou Empire.

"It's wonderful to see your safe return back home, Aella", Lady Scheherazade stated as she turned to walk towards the main room.

Muu and Aella took this as a signal to follow, "I'm glad I'm back in one piece, honestly. There were times when I wasn't sure I would!" Aella chuckled.

"Reckless as always I see. And here I was, thinking you got boring", Muu joked.

"Well, of course! Where's the fun in journeying the world when you're just going to tiptoe on the sidelines! I say just dive straight into the middle!" Both Muu and Aella grinned at one another with mischievous glints in their eyes, "And there's _no_ way I'd get boring, Muu." Aella flicked some of her hair over her shoulder before giving Muu a teasing grin.

"Plus, Muu, you were like that before, weren't you? If I recall correctly, you caused Lady Scheherazade quite a bit of trouble when you went on your escapade to the Dark Continent…" Aella smirked while feigning a wondering look.

Muu's face suddenly began to match his vibrant hair and equally vibrant eyes when her words sunk in, "H-hey, how do you even know about that?! I'm sure Lady Scheherazade wouldn't—Wait. You didn't tell anyone did you?" Aella, however, just winked while she skipped onward towards her adoptive mother, leaving Muu is a blabbering, yet somehow simultaneously speechless, state.

As she arrived to Lady Scheherazade's side, looking back at Muu with extreme amusement, she heard a quiet voice beside her, "You shouldn't embarrass Muu so much right when you've returned, Aella. He _did_ miss you. And I'm sure it was the same for you."

Aella looked down sheepishly at her mother's chastising, "Well it's exactly for that reason that I can't help but mess with him. We were so close when we were kids…I was really dreading the thought that my time away would've changed that."

Before anymore could be said, they had reached the main room where they were to speak about the _other_ side of Aella's journey.

"Muu. Would you mind waiting for Aella out here? I'm afraid she wouldn't know where to go after this, and I have a meeting with The Council", Lady Scheherazade requested of the man who had reassembled his dignity enough to bow his head and turn away from the door, a sign that meant he respected her choice of privacy. However, in reality he was curious as to why since he had been aware of the circumstances of Aella's journey. However, as –the captain of the Fanalis Corp and a servant of Reim's Magi, it was his sole duty to obey her will. At least, that's how it was for him.

Aella heard a loud, echoing slam as the double doors closed as she turned to the golden Magi with a curious look. "With all due respect, Mother, but why didn't you let Muu into the room? I'm sure he knows. I mean, he _was_ the one who told me that you wanted to debrief me."

Lady Scheherazade had her back to Aella, looking out a large window behind her throne-like seat -for she refused to allow people to call it a throne due to her strong belief that it was the people, not her, who ruled- at the bustling town beneath. She truly looked like a divine being, with her already golden hair reflecting the rays of the setting sun, creating an outline around her petite frame. "I believed some things from your journey are better left unsaid until you deem it to be the right time", her soft voice almost unheard as a soft breeze blew in from smaller windows that were opened, bringing in the salty scent of the ocean.

Aella inhaled the scent deeply, _'I guess there are benefits to moving to a port city.'_ During her journey Aella found out the smell of the ocean was her favorite smell. Along with sandalwood and lemongrass.

Suddenly, Aella understood the meaning of Lady Scheherazade's words. "Oh haha…So you _did_ know about that", she said as she scratched the back of her head nervously. "The Council isn't going to try to get rid of me right?"

Lady Scheherazade turned to face her, a stern look on her face. "Who your father is should be of no concern to them. I personally don't see any problem or threat." Her face then softened, "I am truly glad you have found a piece of yourself, my dear Aella."

Aella smiled at this, "I am too. But you will always be my mother, Lady Scheherazde"

"And you will always be my daughter, Aella."

After a moment of heartfelt silence, Lady Scheherazade asked Aella to shortly debrief her on her findings, for the hard details were not yet needed. Aella then bowed to one knee and lowered her head.

"From what I can tell, the Kou Empire's Magi has gotten almost every Ren child a Djinn, making them all candidates. The eldest brother, Kouen, has also been rumored to have more than one, however I wasn't able to verify it. We should definitely keep an eye on them. There's word that there are dealings with Al-Thamen, specifically that their Magi is from them. "

Lady Scheherazade nodded thoughtfully, "Al-Thamen is definitely a problem, as well as their numerous Metal Vessel users. What of Sindria?"

"Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find out a lot about Sindria in comparison to th Kou Empire. All I know is what the rest of the world knows: King Sinbad owns seven Metal Vessels, is accompanied by eight generals from varying kingdoms and descents, and is quite cunning. I deeply apologize for my lack of information", she hung her head low, "I do, however, know that there seems to be a young Magi in his presence, a _fourth Magi_."

Lady Scheherazade opened her eyes at this then looked down, thinking. _'A fourth Magi. That is definitely something that should be out of the question, and yet I_ know _I felt his presence as well.'_

"I see", Lady Scheherazade inhaled and looked at Aella seriously, "I must apologize for asking this when you've just returned, but the circumstances are far too extreme to risk a break. Aella, I command you to return to Sindria and find out more about this fourth Magi, as well as King Sinbad."

"I humbly accept", she paused and her posture faltered a little, "However…if I may be so bold to ask, may you please grant me one more day here? To…try to remember this place for when I'm gone again?"

Lady Scheherazade looked at her sadly, but nodded nonetheless. She knew it wasn't the palace that she wanted to remember, but the people who resided in it. Aella had always been consumed with the worry that the bonds she had with the people of Reim would break because she wasn't there to keep it together. As a child who grew up, knowing she had been abandoned in some manner, made her fear it from happening again.

When Aella and Lady Scheherazade walked out the double doors, the first thing they saw was the red hair that was reflecting the candlelight in the now darkened hallway.

Lady Scheherazade noticed it almost immediately; the sad flash that crossed Aella's face when she caught sight of Muu, who had turned to look their way when the doors opened. Out of everyone in the palace, Muu and Aella had been the best of friends, and it broken their hearts knowing that they would miss ten years of each other's lives. But neither said anything because they both accepted that it was their duty. He bowed his head slightly and came forward to stand in front of them.

"Ready? I'm sure you're tired from your trip back", he asked Aella. The bags under her eyes were more visible with the candlelight casting shadows on every indent on her face.

"Oh, I guess now that you mention it I am pretty tired", she chuckled and then turned to Lady Scheherazade, "If you'll excuse for the night?"

"Of course, get your rest." The pair turned to walk down the corridor to where their rooms were supposed to be, Aella walking a little ways ahead despite her not knowing where she was going. But that was just how she was.

Before Muu could get far, however, Lady Scheherazade called for him softly. He turned to face her, glancing back at Aella to make sure he didn't lose her somehow, "Yes, Lady Scheherazade?"

"I don't recall sending you to pick up Aella earlier", amusement evident on her face.

Despite the dark lighting, she didn't miss the surprise on his face. He coughed , "I suppose Lo'Lo must have heard wrong then. My apologies if that had upset you", he bowed his head.

"No, of course not. It was just a bit…curious. However, I understand now. Lo'Lo does tend to have miscommunications." And understand, she did. But it had nothing to do with Lo'Lo's miscommunications. And she doubted Muu understood it himself. "Good night then, Muu. It would be best if you caught up to Aella. Who knows where she is right now."

Muu bowed to her and turned into a light sprint, hoping to not find that Aella fell somewhere or just decided to sleep in a random room.

As he left, Lady Scheherazade smiled gently at the sight of their Rukh coming together.


	4. Capitolo Quattro (IV)

**Capitolo Quattro (IV):** **Il Giorno Prima Che Sia Tutto Finito Ancora Una Volta|** _ **The Day Before It's All Gone Again**_

The weather was perfect today. Aella knew it before she even woke up from her long slumber, based off of the feel of the sun, whose rays seeped through the curtains, and the light breeze that came through the window she left open last night. Or maybe it was Muu who opened it for her, knowing she liked sleeping with fresh air circulating. Aella honestly had no idea. After being dismissed by Lady Scheherazade, she had entered into a state which paralleled some form of a drunken stupor.

This state of unconsciousness and insensibility had left Muu wondering if she had been like that on her journey. And if she had been…well, it's very fortunate that she was back safe and sound. As long as he had known her, Muu had no doubt that Aella brought drowsy to a whole new level.

Muu actually _had_ been the one to open the window. Along with getting Aella into the right room. _And_ putting her to bed. _And_ making sure she was sleeping not dead. He had really begun to wonder how she came back in one piece, but he was glad nonetheless.

Aella sat up in bed and sighed in content at the feeling of the warm yet cool ocean breeze after stretching. "Today would be a good day to go out", she lightly smiled at the thought of enjoying herself in her homeland with her long-awaited friends. However, her smile was soon replaced by a frown as she looked down at her hands, which were resting against the light blue sheets of her bed, "And it would probably be the best way to…break the news to them." She sighed deeply, "Why did it have to turn out this way?", she questioned, holding her head in her hands.

After a few moments, Aella lightly slapped both of her cheeks, deciding that her self-pity party had gone on long enough. With determination in her eyes, she got out of bed to get dressed for the day, finally deciding on what she needs to do. _'I'm going to make the most of today before I have to leave again! No regrets!'_

In all honesty however, Aella had no idea how long her mission would be this time around, so she didn't know how to go about making sure she had "no regrets" before leaving in one day. Would it be a couple weeks to which she could return as if she were never gone, or will it be for years to which she'll return practically a stranger? Not knowing was the problem. At least if she knew she could do _something_ to make the whole situation easier.

She sighed in frustration at the situation she unfortunately found herself in. She finally drew in a breath and exhaled in resignation, _'It's for Lady Scheherazade, Aella. It's for Reim, Aella. You can do this again. One more time. Just one more.'_ She closed her eyes while she continued her mental mantra, breathing steadily. Aella had always been one to put Lady Scheherazade and Reim before herself, she owed her adoptive mother at least that much. However, despite this, she still felt something nagging in the back of her mind: _She didn't want to leave_.

This, of course, surprised her, seeing as she had significantly less problems when she had left before. So why now? The obvious answer was that she didn't even get to really reunite with her childhood friends and even meet any new members Muu had picked up to become part of the Fanalis Corps.

 _Muu._ Aella looked up into her bronze Cheval mirror at her sterling blue hues. Seeing him certainly caught Aella completely off guard. And that was the understatement of the century. He just looked so different; so… _mature_.

The thought of Muu mature made her chuckle. For as long as she could remember, he had always been a temperamental child- sweet, but temperamental all the same. He must have grown up while she was away, _'It's about time',_ she thought as she scoffed amusedly. When she left at the age of seventeen, he had been nineteen, so Aella supposed that would've been around the time he had begun to "mature". She just wished she could've been there to see it happen.

She gasped loudly, bringing her hand up to cover her mouth. "If Muu had matured this much, then Myron….Myron must've gone through puberty!" Aella mumbled in shock. Her shock was soon taken over by held-in laughs. Aella had realized that Myron had no other girls around her besides Lady Scheherazade and herself...so that only left one person Myron could talk about it with. Muu.

That was it. That was all it took for her to finally burst out laughing. Just the thought, alone, of Muu trying to explain puberty to Myron was hilarious. And then add on Myron's _already_ existing, drastic mood swings. Needless to say, Aella was dying with laughter. She really did hope by that time, Muu had found female Fanalis who would be there for Myron- for Myron's sake, but especially for Muu's.

The ravenette suddenly realized something. _Female Fanalis_. Muu might've met someone. She looked down at her bare feet, chin in one of her hands, "He _was_ nineteen and single when I left…So he must've met someone!" However, Aella suddenly facepalmed, keeping her thumb and pointer finger on her temple, "But then again. I left to a new world at seventeen and didn't even come back with at least the experience of being with someone, let alone _someone_." She sighed again, dragging her hand down her face in exasperation. "So…maybe he _didn't_ meet someone", Aella murmured to herself, looking back at her reflection through her fingers, a slight tilt of her mouth barely visible.

Aella cleared her throat and shook her head as she finally looked into the mirror to check on what she had dressed herself in.

She had been too immersed in her thoughts about leaving again -as well as all the tangents she found herself entertaining- that she grabbed the first thing that was available to her, as well as whatever caught her eye and put it on. But now that she's finally getting a good look at it, she had to wonder where it actually came from. She was donning a white dress that resembled a toga, but with a more feminine fit in contrast to the typical loose style. The garment faded from its white color to a light blue towards the bottom. It was also garnished with a dark blue sash tied around the waist with golden leaves sown on the edges, giving the outfit a subtle design that was representative of Reim due to its similarity to the Laurel Wreath.

This was the first time Aella had ever worn this dress, and it was also the first time she's ever laid her eyes on it. If she had owned this dress, she definitely would've remembered it. Needless to say, she didn't buy it, seeing as she had arrived yesterday and had no opportunity to go into the market-except when Muu got her lost with his "map"- , and it definitely wasn't something she left or else it wouldn't have fit. As she continued to admire the dress, Aella had to admit that wherever the dress came from, it fit perfectly and it complimented her physique splendidly. In addition to that, it made her feel -and look- as if she herself were the ocean-especially with the early morning breeze blowing softly through the fabric, making the skirt of her dress look as if they were elegant waves.

Aella turned away from her reflection when she heard a knock on her door and a muffled "Excuse me" before her door opened, revealing Muu in his usual garb.

"Aella, I hope you haven't planned anything yet because I-", Muu cut himself off when he finally looked at the silver-blue eyed girl directly, evidently shocked by what – _who_ \- stood before him.

"Oh! Muu, do you have any idea where this dress came from? It's beautiful", Aella exclaimed happily as she lightly spun from side to side, holding the skirt of the dress in each of her hands to show him.

To be honest, Muu had already expected Aella to look different from how she looked when they were younger once she returned, as women tend to mature a great deal in terms of physical features, but he had never expected…this.

He cleared his throat when he finally processed Aella's questioning gaze and raised eyebrow, "Uh," he scratched the back of his neck looking past her, "Myron must've gotten it for you for when you come back,"

"Myron? Oh. Well then you'll have to remind me to thank her when I see her", she smiled.

Muu was suddenly in front of her with one of his hands on her mouth, "No, no, no. Don't do that." A muffled "why" was heard, to which Muu quickly replied, "She didn't want you to know. It was a-a surprise." ' _Yeah…that's good. A surprise'._

Muu felt Aella's mouth form an "O" shape against his hand, signaling that she understood what he was saying. The flame haired man closed his eyes and sighed in relief as he took his hand off of her mouth.

"What are you doing here anyways, Muu?" Aella inquired, tilting her head.

Muu opened his eyes and grinned, grabbing her wrist and pulling her behind him, "It's a good thing you were already awake and dressed. It'll save us some time."

Aella stumbled behind him due to being taken by surprise by Muu's sudden pull. "Save us some time for what, Muu? Where are we going anyway?" she said loudly so he could hear her from behind him.

He tilted his head back to face her enough so she could make out his facial expression; the captain of the Fanalis Corps gave her a lopsided smile then said, "Out."


	5. Capitolo Cinque (V)

**Capitolo Cinque (V):** **Migliori Amici |** _ **Best Friends**_

The younger of the Alexius siblings was walking amongst the people in the marketplace - greeting and conversing with the townspeople who approached her with respect and timid adoration - when she heard what sounded like battle cries from quite distinct and familiar voices.

She approached a cheering crowd that was surrounding what seemed to be two men who were brawling in the middle of the street, judging by how they formed a circle around them and were screaming out violent encouragements to whomever it was they believed would be the victor. And much to Myron's disdain, once she pushed through the throng of people she found the two culprits were none other than Lo'Lo and Jarrah. Jarrah being one of the newer, feistier Fanalis Corps recruits.

She closed her eyes and gritted her teeth in hopes of keeping herself from doing anything that would shame her brother. Taking a deep breath and putting on a big smile, she clapped her hand together, saying "Now, now guys. You shouldn't do such primitive things." The younger Alexius stood there with her hands together waiting for the ruffians to stop. But with each passing moment in which they didn't, Myron grew more and more irritated, her hands forming into fists, and a low growl starting to erupt from her throat. The townspeople, knowing their "princess" of sorts, took several steps back, anticipating what was coming.

With a single frustrated roar, Myron grabbed the back of both males' collars, who were running towards each other, and slammed them face first into the stone ground.

"Quit being so barbaric, damn it! You're disgracing my brother's name!" she roared loudly.

She was about to resume her "lady-like chastising" when something caught her eye. She looked up and saw her brother tugging along some beautiful woman behind him. But that wasn't what really caught her eye – what woman wouldn't be enchanted by her wonderful brother, it was only natural (even though it has never actually happened). _'That dress…looks familiar',_ she thought as she eyed the beautifully crafted garment that could not be mistaken for another due to its original and unique design.

By this time, Lo'Lo and Jarrah and gotten up, curious as to why Myron's trademark tantrum was halted so quickly. Looking up at her face, albeit a bit hesitantly for fear of being punched by the female Fanalis, they turned their heads to look at what diverted her attention away from them – thankfully. Both males squinted in order to see what it was that had caught Myron's attention and after a moment of staring, they looked at each other, grinning stupidly.

"Ohoho," Lo'Lo's chuckled roughly, hanging an arm around Myron's shoulders, "looks like the captain's finally letting loose and getting a girl", he smirked.

Myron swatted his arm before turning to him, "Oh come on. You know Brother only has eyes for Aella, whether he acknowledges it or not. It's so obvious", she said, flipping her hair over her shoulder as if reciting a well-known fact.

"Who's Aella?" Jarrah asked from behind Lo'Lo.

"Then how do you explain the _woman_ he was with and the fact that the damn workaholic actually took a _day off_ from serving the Lady?" Lo'Lo challenged, ignoring the new recruit.

"Brother isn't as fainthearted as _you_ when it comes to women," she growled out, butting heads with the source of her indignation, "Don't disrespect him by grouping him with your kind. And Aella was different to him. You should know that since you've actually seen them together."

"Uh…hey guys?" Jarrah drawled with a hint of frustration, standing in front of both of them in order to be acknowledged. However, unfortunately for him, it didn't quite work out.

"Hey! There's nothing wrong with the captain trying to find some _womanly comfort._ Maybe he finally snapped and gave into our innate temptations. After all, the miss has been gone for...what? Ten years already? Give or take a couple months", Lo'Lo smirked pervertedly, butting heads with the now-disgusted red-headed woman.

Said red-headed woman growled, but then closed her eyes and took a deep breath, calming herself. She straightened herself out, removing herself from the headbutt-battle Lo'Lo had waged against her. Putting her hands on her hips and giving an exasperated huff, she said "Honestly, how did I get paired up with such an idiot as Brother's Household Vessels?" as she crossed her arms and placed a hand on her face, "Unlike you, my brother isn't weak against such primitive and unrestrained thoughts."

Jarrah felt that now would be the perfect time to be heard, "Hey guys."

"What!?" both belligerent Fanalis yelled out; still not completely free from the hostile mood created by their little "battle".

"Uh…Why don't we just follow them?" he looked at their faces to see if he would get yelled at again, but seeing their blank facial expressions urged him to continue speaking, "I mean, we could get a closer look at the woman he's supposedly out with and figure out what the cap'n is really up to."

Myron and Lo'Lo continued to just stand there and blink at the young Fanalis, taking in his proposal as the crowd around them began to disperse knowing their entertainment was over for the day. After a moment, Lo'Lo grinned excitedly, clapping Jarrah hard on the shoulder.

"Well, well. Who knew our newest recruit could be so sneaky", Lo'Lo roared with laughter, "I like it. It'd be nice to finally settle who's right, eh Myron?", he continued, speaking pointedly to Myron, whom he noticed was a bit hesitant since it was "beneath her" to stick her nose in her brother's business.

However, Lo'Lo's challenge fired her up again, "You're on Lo'Lo", she stated as they clasped their hands together in agreement. "And the loser has to do one thing that the winner wants", Myron grinned wickedly.

"Done", Lo'Lo accepted, mirroring the wicked grin on Myron's face.

Having laid out the terms of the challenge, the pair unclasped their hands and walked towards Jarrah, who was scanning the crowd where they had seen Muu and Aella. As they approached him, Myron and Lo'Lo simultaneously threw an arm over each of Jarrah's shoulders, dragging him into the crowd.

Muu had dragged Aella up until the bustling marketplace where she had gotten lost with Muu's so-called map. Now that she wasn't frustratingly looking down at a paper and looking for something, she had the time to really take in and admire the freshness that the city of Narpolia had to offer.

As Aella stood gazing at all the different stalls and the goods they had to offer, a glint coming from Aella's neck caught Muu's attention.

Sitting on her neck, after all these years, was a silver laurel wreath pendant that wrapped around a golden circular pendant with the initial "M" on it, and from what he remembered, the initial "A" on the back side of it.

Catching Aella's attention, Muu slowly walked up to her and gently picked up the pendant sitting just below her collarbones, recalling a memory while he gazed at it nostalgically.

 _Muu was running as fast as his Fanalis blood could take him. Sweat trickling down his forehead and his breath coming out labored and distressed._

 _He didn't care who saw him. He didn't care how far he's run. He didn't care that he looked like a child, running the way he was - so desperately, so fiercely. He needed to make it in time. He just had to._

 _After all, his best friend was leaving today._

" _I'm so stupid! How could I forget it! I was with her all day!", he growled in frustration as he willed himself to go faster._

 _The frustrated Fanalis had finished his daily training only moments ago, feeling as if he was forgetting something important as he walked into his room in Remano. He had said his goodbyes to Aella already since she had to go to Narpolia to board a ship, so that definitely wasn't it._

 _Muu took a seat, sighing as he began to unwind from a particularly tiresome day of sparring, when the object of his restlessness caught his eye, glimmering on his night stand._

 _That very same object was now tightly clutched in Muu's fist as he neared Narpolia._

 _The moment he realized his mistake, he took off - running from Remano all the way to Reim's port city, where he only hoped Aella hadn't boarded yet._

 _His legs were aching and his lungs were burning when Muu finally saw the ocean. He quickly scanned the crowd, looking for a familiar head of black hair._

 _Muu was becoming frustrated until he saw her - that black-haired troublemaker of a friend - climbing onto the boards that led up to the ship's deck._

" _Aella!", he yelled out as he dashed over to her._

" _Muu? What are you doing here? Wait. How the hell did you even get here?! Remano is-", Muu, who was previously bent over catching his breath, slapped a hand over Aella's mouth, effectively silencing the 17-year-old._

" _Do you always ask your elders so many questions, Aella?", he grinned teasingly._

 _Aella struggled to get her voice back, as it was muffled now thanks to a certain red-head. She grabbed his hand in both of hers and pulled it off her face, holding it only inches away from herself to make sure he doesn't try to silence her again._

" _What do you mean '_ elders' _? You're only two years older than me, Muu!", Aella laughed, "Keep at it and I may just treat you as an old man!"_

" _Oh shut up", Muu slid out of Aella's grasp and walked towards her, "And here, I'm sure you're wondering what I'm doing here. I just forgot to give you this. I had it made and everything, so it'd be a waste to just let it sit here while you're away", Muu explained as he reached around Aella to fasten the silver necklace around her neck._

 _The initials "A" on the front and the initials "M" on the back._

Muu smiled gently, "You still have it…", he then looked up at her - not at all missing the light blush that dusted her cheeks due to their proximity- and smiled teasingly at her, "And you've even turned it around", he grinned.

Aella just turned her head away and crossed her arms, putting some distance between them without breaking her necklace since Muu was still fiddling with it between his fingers.

"S-So what, you Tomato? I have to take it on and off you know, or else it'll rust", she replied pointedly, albeit a little flustered.

"No need to be shy, Aella. It's okay if you missed me", Muu wriggled his eyebrows at her, "And plus, you know I wouldn't have gotten that made for you with material that would rust", he pointed out, letting go of the pendant and putting his hands on his hips in a victorious manner.

"Shut up, moron! How could I have known it wouldn't rust without you telling me?", she huffed back.

Silence passed between the two as they remained this way - a tall Fanalis man grinning victoriously and teasingly at an exasperated young woman.

Suddenly, Aella heard the familiar ring of Muu's contagious laughter beginning to bubble in his chest until he couldn't contain it any longer. She felt her lips twitch at the sound of it, willing herself to hold it in. Aella lasted for a good five seconds before she couldn't help but laugh along with him.

Muu recovered after a short while and approached the giggling woman, who seemingly couldn't stop laughing.

Muu smiled, thinking ' _Same old Aella. Can never stop laughing once you get her started.'_

Aella was still chuckling when Muu grabbed onto her wrist and pulled her into his chest, wrapping an arm around her waist while the other held her head to the crook of his neck.

"It's nice to have you back home, Aella", he whispered into her hair.

The ravenette's widened eyes soon closed as she wrapped her arms around Muu's torso, relishing in the hug from her best friend that she hadn't received in ten years.

"It's nice to be home, Muu."


	6. Capitolo Sei (VI)

**Capitolo Sei (VI)** **: Stesso Vecchio, Stesso Vecchio? |** _ **Same Old, Same Old?**_

A boisterous laugh filled the marketplace where Muu and Aella were standing, pulling them out of their embrace. Muu turned around while Aella peeked over his shoulder curiously in order to find the source of such an amused laugh. However, the sight that greeted them was unexpectedly expected.

Aella giggled behind Muu as said Fanalis just facepalmed. _'Ah...Well if it isn't my favorite soon-to-be-couple'_ , she thought mischievously.

A little ways away from the two stood a victorious Myron and a defeated Lo'Lo on his knees with a look of emptiness and absolute dread. Rolling on the floor next to him was the source of glee that caught Muu and Aella's attention.

"Who's that? The young one rolling on the floor?" Aella asked Muu, moving next to him and nudging his arm with her own.

Muu chuckled to himself, recovering from his facepalm, "That's our newest recruit, Jarrah. As you can see, he's rather...rambunctious. And to make matters worse, he looks at those two as his _role models_ ", he replied gleefully. "Our Fanalis Corps has really grown into a true military power since you've been away. You'd love them", Muu turned to Aella, smiling excitedly.

Aella returned his smile, "Well if they're anything like you, Myron, and Lo'Lo it's practically guaranteed I'll like them. Plus, I feel like I'm going to become the best of friends with this Jarrah kid", she stated, giving a wolfish grin.

Muu raised an eyebrow at the devilish look in her eye, letting out a soft laugh. _'Tough luck, kid. Tough luck'_ , he thought, shaking his head.

The pair began to walk towards the trio who had, by this time, resulted to arguing. _'Well, at least I know that not much has changed with their personalities since I've been away'_ , Aella laughed softly. As they continued their trek, a thought occurred to Aella.

"Say, what do you think they're arguing about anyway? I'm kind of getting a weird feeling from it", Aella shook away the shivers she felt go down her back.

Muu snorted, "Oh, it's probably nothi-".

The Fanalis was cut short as they approached the trio, finally at a distance where they were able to hear what Myron and Lo'Lo were butting heads about this time.

"How dare you accuse me of cheating, you primitive ape!?"

"Oh admit it Myron! You knew she was coming! There's no way you could've been that certain that he was with a girl who's been gone for ten years! There was a higher chance it could've been any other girl!"

"Did you get some more brain damaged at the Colosseum last night? Obviously the chances of it being another girl is close to zero since Brother hasn't been seen _once_ with a girl these past ten years", Myron emphasized, pulling down her cheek to make her eye pop out while she stuck out her tongue.

At this, Aella glanced bemusedly at the increasingly flustered man standing next to her. He was still smiling - as always - but had a nervous tick in his cheek that made his lips twitch, as sweat slowly trickled down his temples.

"Just because the captain wasn't _seen_ , doesn't mean nothing happened!", Lo'Lo pointedly remarked, Jarrah nodding his head behind him.

"Oh please. Even _I_ didn't think you could be this stupid. Everyone knows that Aella is the only girl that my brother has ever-", Myron was cut short at the sound of Muu clapping his hands together, giving them a closed-eyed smile.

"Now, now guys. There's no need to cause such a commotion with so many spectators around. People might begin to think we're just a band of rowdy beasts", Muu chided cheekily, putting an arm around Myron and Lo'Lo's necks as he guided them out of the marketplace.

After watching Muu guide the two bickering Fanalis a little further Aella turned to Muu's newest recruit, smiling gently and sticking her hand out politely, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Jarrah. I've been looking forward to meeting the Fanalis Corps since I got here, so I'm glad I had the opportunity to meet you!'

The boy in question - who had been zoned out for the past five minutes or so - turned to Aella hastily and clasped her outstretched hand in both of his, bowing. "Oh no, the pleasure's all mine, Lady Alexius."

Aella widened her metallic blue eyes in surprise, "...Well, I'm a little caught off guard right now, to be honest. From what I've seen and heard, I expected you to be a little more...feisty", she grinned down at the boy, who was now blushing.

"Well Captain Muu always said to be polite to the royal family and those in command. And it's only right I do as he says! The captain is amazing, after all!", Jarrah declared, fired up again.

The young woman chuckled, finding the young Fanalis endearing, "You must really admire him, Jarrah. How old are you? If you don't mind me asking."

"14, Lady Alexius! And I do admire the captain! A whooooole lot", he replied enthusiastically.

Hearing Jarrah call her that reminded Aella of something, "Oh, that's right...Jarrah, you don't have to call me that", she smiled as she explained, "Aella is just fine for me. Besides, I never took on the last name 'Alexius' since it belongs to the royal bloodline and Lady Scheherazade didn't take it on herself."

Jarrah looked at her puzzled, stammering, "O-Oh...umm...well, I guess I was mistaken then…", he mumbled out, looking down.

"Mistaken? About what?"

The boy looked up at her, curiosity in his eyes, "Well...I just thought that...umm...Aren't you married to Captain Muu?"

Aella's gentle expression turned confused as she creased her eyebrows, _'Married to…!?'_. With a sudden realization, she gasped and hurriedly looked up at the wide-eyed youth.

"What!?"

The endless bickering of his very own Household Members - whom he still had under his arms - was starting to get to the captain of the Fanalis Corps.

With a sigh, Muu released the rowdy pair only to clap them both on the back, forcing them out of whatever argument they were having this time around.

Looking at their surprised faces, Muu smiled peacefully, "Let's just enjoy each other's company today guys, after all, it's technically Aella's first day back in ten years", he said in an attempt to pacify their belligerence.

"Hah? What're you talkin' about Captain? Didn't Aella go somewhere when we left the marketplace?", Lo'Lo asked, confusion evident on his and Myron's faces.

"What?", Muu replied, his eyes still closed and his mouth still formed into his trademark peaceful smile.

"Brother, are you okay? She hasn't been with us for the last ten minutes. I thought you knew…", Myron elaborated, looking at him weirdly.

"...What?"

' _...I think he's broken'_ , Myron thought, shooting her partner a worried glance.

Lo'Lo, not noticing Myron's silent message, continued to converse with Muu as if nothing was wrong, "Don't worry, Captain. I'm sure the Miss is just fine. Jarrah's been gone for about the same time, so she's at least got him", he teased, guffawing.

"...What?", Muu replied once again, his smile beginning to look nervous.

Myron, immediately noticing Lo'Lo's mistake, went to punch him on the head. Thus, igniting an entirely new argument again.

As their argument took flight, realization seemed to dawn on the Fanalis Corps Captain, "What!?", he yelled in panic.

Having put a pause on their bickering, Myron and Lo'Lo turned to look at Muu only to see him sprinting in the direction they came.

The pair could do nothing except stare at him with disbelief, their faces deadpanned.

"Now do you believe me?", Myron huffed after a moment of silence passed between the two. She crossed her arms and shot a pointed look at him. Lo'Lo could do nothing but stare at the empty space that his once-always-dignified leader had occupied.

' _You've gotta be kidding me.'_

Muu found himself approaching a questionable scene as he neared where they had all been standing ten minutes ago.

Aella was completely red-faced as she waved frantically at a confused Jarrah. From what he could see, she was trying to tell him something - to which Jarrah would respond and make her gestures even more frantic and embarrassed.

He was soon able to hear a part of their conversation as he reached them.

"N-no, no, no. It's not like that! We're just-", Aella having noticed Muu's presence in her peripheral was quick to change the subject, "Muu! I was wondering where you guys went!", she exclaimed, her smile unnatural.

"Uh-huh…"

However, before Muu could pursue his skepticism any further, Jarrah piped in, "Hiya, Cap'n!", he saluted lazily before looking behind Muu inquisitively, "Where are Myron and Lo'Lo?"

"They're up ahead. They might be heading to the colosseum now", Muu replied, hands on his hips while he looked back in the direction he came.

The young Fanalis gave an exaggerated gasp, falling to the floor in mock-despair, "They-They left without me!? What cruel mentors! Leaving me to face the horrors of the world alone!?", he cried out. "But I'll show them!", Jarrah exclaimed, sprinting off, leaving a bewildered ravenette and a bemused red-head.

"...And here I thought I've seen it all from him", Aella chuckled while she shook her head in amazement.

"Oh, you have no idea", her best friend grinned. Muu started to walk in the direction of the colosseum, Aella following in suit.

A comfortable silence passed between the two as they strolled down the chattering streets of Reim. It was evening now and the cooling winds were sending over slight wafts of the refreshing ocean smell towards Aella. She inhaled deeply, taking in the fresh, salty scent she's always loved. Mixed into the the aquatic aroma was another scent she couldn't quite put her finger on. It was a relatively new scent, but part of it felt old...as if it were familiar. But if there's one thing she knew for sure, it's that she fell in love with it right then and there. _'It smells like...home'_ , she thought contentedly.

Muu glanced at the girl walking next to him, his peaceful smile broadening a bit at the sight of her admiring the sky. From what he could remember, she was always fascinated by how the sun could _"change the way the sky looks just because it was tired of sitting in the sky all day"._

' _She used to always comment on it during sunset'_ , he thought nostalgically, _'I guess some things do change…'_

"Hey, Muu…", Aella started, knocking Muu out of his reverie, "...Have I ever told you how amazing it is that the sun can make the sky look this beautiful just because it's tired of sitting in the sky all day?", she continued, not looking away from the darkening sky.

' _...Or not',_ Muu sweatdropped at Aella's ironic question - given his thought process prior to her inquiry.

Having received no response, Aella glanced at the red-head. Realizing that he zoned out again, Muu teasingly replied, "About as many times as the sun has set, Aella."

Turning her head so she was facing him, Aella suddenly gave Muu a goofy grin, "Oh yeah, huh?", nudging him with her shoulder.

The pair continued on, nudging and dodging each other, as they laughed in amusement.

However, Muu turned his body towards Aella, a thought occurring to him. Still thinking their nudge-and-dodge game was still going on, Aella swayed her body to the right. Having moved to face her, Muu had unknowingly put some space between himself and Aella. Surprised that her shoulder didn't collide as it had been up until now, Aella lost balanced, now tilting to her right. In an attempt to catch herself, she turned her body.

Only to crash face-first into Muu's chest armor.

"Ow, ow, ow", Aella whined, rubbing her nose. She pulled away, looking at Muu in confused irritation. Her irritation only grew when she saw him turned around, trying to hold in his laughter.

It didn't take Muu long until he finally broke, however. Soon he was howling in laughter, watching Aella grimace as she rubbed her nose to sooth the pain. _'That insensitive dog'_ , Aella thought grumpily, referencing to his "howls". She began to walk away, continuing their trek to meet the Fanalis Corps.

The "insensitive dog" called out to Aella as he lightly jogged up next to her, his laughter down to little intermittent chuckles. "Come on, Aella. You can't stay mad at me for that. I was just standing there!", he reasoned. Aella glanced at him bitterly. Reading her look, Muu raised his hands in defense and conceded, "All right, all right. I'm sorry for laughing at you", he smiled apologetically.

After staring at him for a bit, she sighed, "Yeah, yeah…". Aella lazily waved him off with her right hand while her left stayed on her nose. "Why'd you stop anyway?"

Taking that as her accepting his apology, Muu grinned and proceeded to answer her question, "Oh! Well, I wanted to know what you and Jarrah were talking about. It seemed like a juicy subject", he winked at her.

Aella looked at him weirdly, not recalling what he was referring to. _'What Jarrah and I were talking about? What?'_

But as her metallic blue eyes made contact with red, the memory of her previous conversation with the rather...blunt Fanalis flooded her mind. Muu noticed the ravenette tense up and look away - but not before her cheeks were touched by a light red hue.

Muu tried to peer at her face, but he was unsuccessful as she moved her head at an angle where he couldn't make out her face, "Well?", Muu prodded while he wriggled his eyebrows at her.

With a cough, Aella finally turned towards him, her face back to normal.

"Oh, nothing really. Jarrah was just trying to be funny", she said nonchalantly, feigning indifference.

"Oh? How so?", he smirked, remembering how red she had been.

"W-Well…"

"Weeeeeell?"

"He asked me if we were married!", Aella finally relented, huffing in exasperation. Realizing that she just blurted it out like that, Aella looked up at Muu with wide eyes.

But what she was met with was nothing she had expected. _'...Nothing? No laughter? Not even amusement? Annoyance? Horror?'_ , Aella thought, looking at him suspiciously while half of her expected him to burst out laughing at any second, saying that they were just friends so that wouldn't be possible.

But as Aella waited and waited for this reaction, all she got was a blank-faced Muu who could only blink at her.

Finally unnerved, Aella chuckled skittishly, " Yeah...haha...I know, right? Jarrah! Haha...That troublemaker", she said, hoping to break whatever trance Muu was in. Looking back up and noticing there was no change, she scratched the back of her head nervously, "Haha...Well, u-umm, I'm just gonna - ehem- gonna go ahead." Aella awkwardly and stiffly walked away.

Muu, however, was still trying to absorb what Aella said - not hearing what she said at all. The Fanalis kept playing back the moment he approached the two during their conversation. After the fiftieth time around, Muu was adamant about one thing: she was definitely blushing.

The red-head lowered his head and placed his hand on his face, sighing deeply.

' _Well, damn'_ , he thought.

A ghost of a smile just barely visible behind his hand.


	7. Capitolo Sette (VII)

**Capitolo Sette (VII)** **: Non Di Nuovo |** _ **Not Again**_

Aella sat behind Myron, fixing the female Fanalis's hair into her trademark half updo, while they chatted along sitting on the large stone seats in the Colosseum, as the members of the Fanalis Corps began to assemble in the center. The two young women watched as some of the Fanalis began to get bored, which resulted in picking minor brawls with each other while some cheered them on and others even joined.

"Tch, what a bunch of ruffians", Myron scoffed flipping some of her hair over her shoulder.

"I don't know," Aella chuckled, "to be perfectly honest, I find them to be quite refreshing - and amusing of course", she defended as she finished working with Myron's hair.

"That's because you haven't been forced to spend practically every waking moment with them", she mumbled back, moving to sit behind Aella to braid the ravenette's hair now.

Aella adjusted her position slightly so that Myron could fit behind her comfortably. "Well, that's certainly true. But even _you_ can't deny that it must be nice having them around, _Princess_ ", she replied teasingly.

"Psh, 'Princess' yourself, Aella", Myron scoffed back.

After not hearing any further remarks from the hot-headed Fanalis woman, Aella grinned in satisfaction, now focusing on the feeling of her hair being gently tugged into a braid.

A moment of silence passed between the two, with the chattering of the Fanalis Corps below them when Myron finished Aella's braid. "So...", she began as she tied the end of Aella's braid with a white string.

"Hmm?", Aella replied absentmindedly, gazing at the star-filled sky.

Myron moved beside her, peering at her face and asked, "...Have you thought about marriage yet?"

Flabbergasted, Aella turned her head away from the sky with a slight frown on her lips. "Marriage? Why in the world would I be thinking about that, Myron?", she laughed, astonished at her friend's inquiry.

Myron started laughing along with Aella, "What do you mean 'why'?! You're 27 for crying out loud!"

Aella let out an exaggerated gasp, replying, "Are you calling me old, Myron? That hurts." She frowned and clutched her chest in mock-pain, letting out a laugh when Myron lightly punched her shoulder.

"Oh, shut up, Aella. Come on. Tell me there's _no_ guy you've met in the past ten years _all over the world_ that you've at least been slightly interested in", Myron said, looking at Aella doubtingly.

The woman in question tilted her up and put a finger to her chin, pretending to think about what Myron said. "Hmm...Nope! Not even one", she laughed.

Myron stared at her before bursting into a big grin, "Well that's great then!"

Aella was about to reply when she realized just what Myron had said, looking at her weirdly. "What? I thought- But you said- Wait, wait, wait. If me not having an interest in a guy is 'great', then what was the point of this conversation again?"

Without replying, Myron just smirked at Aella and leaned back, giving her a knowing look. However, Aella wasn't satisfied with her silence as an answer and continued to ask Myron what she was thinking.

Unfortunately, after five minutes of attempting to get Myron to say something other than "Oh nothing~" or "In due time, Aella, in due time", the metallic blue-eyed girl finally relented. She slumped into her seat with her back leaning against the step-like seat behind her, and folded her arms, obviously bitter at Myron's unexpected stubbornness and secrecy on the matter. _'I don't understand what could possible be so secret about_ my own _love life'_ , she thought exasperatedly.

After a moment of sulking, the ravenette smirked mischievously at the redhead next to her. ' _Well I'm certainly not going down without a fight'_ , she thought to herself, leaning forward so she could whisper to Myron.

Myron heard her shift and turned to her, raising her eyebrows in suspicion at Aella's smirk.

"So Myron…", she began, her smirk growing ever so slightly.

"...Yes?"

"Since you won't answer my first question - you know, the one I've asked you over fifty times - you have to answer another one. Okay?", she haggled, closing her eyes and giving Myron an innocent smile.

' _I have a bad feeling about this, but…'_

"Okay", Myron hesitantly agreed.

At her approval, Aella's smile turned teasing as she leaned forward - looking left and right to make sure no one was listening in. She cupped her hands around her mouth and whispered to Myron, "So what's the deal with you and Lo'Lo?"

"Huh!?", Myron yelled out, catching the attention of most of the Fanalis gathered on the floor of the Colosseum. "Sorry…", she mumbled and looked away.

When Myron was sure she heard the rest of the Fanalis returning to what they were doing, she whipped her head around and glared at Aella. And to make her situation worse, Aella was throwing the same knowing smile at her that Myron had previously thrown at the ravenette.

"What the _hell_ are you talking about, Aella?"

"What do you mean 'what'?", she mocked back.

"Wha- Ugh. What I _mean_ is why would you _ever_ think something was going on between me and _Lo'Lo_ of all people?", she frustratingly whispered back. "I mean, have you even _seen_ that- that- that meathead! He's absolutely unbearable, increasingly primitive every passing day, and- and- an immensely insensitive and dense creature!"

Myron had spouted out her complaints on the Fanalis male in question so quickly and with so much ferocity that by the time she was finished, she was huffing and her face was flushed slightly. Aella could do nothing but smile sympathetically at the younger woman, _'"Insensitive and dense", huh? I see what this is about'_ , she thought.

Noticing Aella hadn't responded, Myron was about to snap at her when she noticed the gentle and unbelievably understanding smile on her face. And that look made Myron feel unusually...vulnerable. As if Aella could see right through her. But what Myron didn't understand was...what _did_ Aella see in her right now? Confused, Myron went to ask her, but Aella suddenly wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her into a sideways hug. Myron's head was resting on Aella shoulder as the older woman leaned her head on Myron's. The Fanalis wanted to protest and demand why Aella was being weird, but suddenly, she just could bring herself to do it.

For years, Myron hadn't known what it was like to have a family aside from her brother. And even if they had Lady Scheherazade, she was the nation's Magi. She couldn't coddle them and play around with them as if she were a real mother. But with Aella, Myron was given the opportunity to feel what it was like to have a sister, and sometimes even a mother at times. If Myron had to be perfectly honest with herself, she had loathed the older girl when she first met her. The girl who befriended her brother almost immediately, the girl who looked to be favored by the great Magi herself. Even though Myron and her brother were found by Lady Scheherazade when they were still young, Myron had always felt inferior to Aella just because she was there first.

But Aella was like a tsunami. She came unexpectedly and powerfully, pulling everyone into her waves. And even after it had passed, you could still feel her effects. She was just that kind of person…

 _Myron sat on a large rock that overlooked a beautiful and clear pond, looking at her reflection. What she saw was red hair and red eyes, characteristics she had only ever seen in her brother and herself. This thought - one that she has had many times - always brought her a feeling of immense loneliness. She wanted to know if she had family aside from Muu._

 _It wasn't that Muu wasn't enough, it was just that Myron always dreamed of having a connection with a sister or a mother. Sighing, Myron splashed at the water, "Like that's ever gonna happen"._

" _What's gonna happen?" Myron jolted at the sound of the voice and turned around, scoffing at its source. Aella, the older girl who lived with her and her brother was approaching her._

 _Ignoring Myron's obvious distaste for her, Aella sat on the rock next to her, "Hey, Myron", she smiled gently._

 _In response, the young Fanalis merely inched away from her, tucking her legs into her chest. They sat in silence. Myron waiting for Aella to leave. Aella waiting for Myron to speak to her._

 _Aella sighed and stood up._ 'Finally she's leaving', _Myron exhaled in relief. But to her dismay, she just stood there. Staring at the sky._

 _Myron sighed in exasperation and looked up to her, saying, "Listen. I'm sure you can already tell that I don't want you around, so why don't you just go ahead and lea-"_

" _You know,", Aella interrupted, much to Myron's further dismay as she clicked her tongue, "I'm not sure if you know this, but Lady Scheherazade adopted me too."_

 _Myron rolled her eyes, "Oh trust me, I know."_

 _But Aella continued on as if she didn't hear the snide comment Myron had aimed at her, "She found me in the streets after my mother had died", she crouched down and gently played with the water, "I can barely even remember my mom actually. I was so young when she passed that I find myself forgetting a piece of her image a little bit everyday."_

 _Myron touched the water gently as well, listening intently._

" _And my father? Well don't even get me started on that...it's not like I can", she laughed humorlessly, "I've never known my father. Nor anything about him, really. And I've never had siblings…"_

 _Myron frowned regretfully. Sure she never knew her father and mother, but she couldn't deny that having Muu around made it easier. But Aella...she had no one._

" _...But I'd really like to have a little sister"._

 _Myron's hands stopped abruptly and her breath caught in her throat. She was so shocked that she couldn't think of anything to say._

 _The older girl sighed softly and stood up, wiping her wet hands on the skirt of her light green dress, "Sorry you had to listen to that, Myron. I think I just really had to get that off my chest, and well", she laughed lightly, "I'm sure you know that Muu isn't the most...delicate person to talk to about feelings and such. But thanks for listening"._

 _After giving Myron a soft smile, she turned and began walking away._

" _Yeah...my brother's an idiot, isn't he?"_

 _Aella turned around after hearing the soft voice and found Myron turned to her direction, a meek smile on her slightly red face._

 _Surprised, Aella turned her body to face Myron. Her widened eyes returned to normal and she went to sit next to Myron again. Looking at her and grinning, she said "Yeah. He is."_

Myron smiled at the memory as the two women pulled apart.

Aella clasped a hand on her shoulder and said, "Don't worry, Myron. I'm sure it'll all work out in the end", her smile becoming teasing.

"Huh? What are you-", suddenly, Myron recalled what they were talking about - and _who_ they were talking about. She gritted her teeth and went to grab Aella, "Why you-!", but Aella ducked down at the last second and sprinted down to the floor of the Colosseum, grinning madly.

Myron watched as she almost collided with a huffing Muu who had just entered the Colosseum, amused at how the scene was unfolding.

From what she could see, her brother had grabbed Aella's upper arms to keep her from colliding with his chest armor. But now, the two were in close proximity and hopelessly blushing as they tried to play it off by laughing about this or that.

Myron scoffed, "When will they ever learn?", she said to herself as she jumped down next to the other Fanalis.

When Myron landed amidst her kin, she noticed most of their attention was on the encounter between their leader and the newcomer.

"Oh? Has the captain finally settled down?", Yaqut, a Fanalis whose shaggy red mane fell over his right eye, asked curiously.

"Settled down? Please. More like, finally got interested in the female population", guffawed Razol, a scarred young Fanalis woman with low pigtails.

Their comments caught the attention of the other Fanalis who were brawling, including Lo'Lo and Jarrah; a crowd beginning to form around them where they could see the pair in question perfectly.

"Ah! It's the Miss!", the 14-year-old boy exclaimed excitedly, apparently adopting Lo'Lo's habit of calling Aella "Miss".

"'The Miss'? You know her, Jarrah?", questioned a female member whose hair was tied up into a high ponytail.

Smiling proudly at the thought of being the only member - aside from Myron and Lo'Lo - who knew who she was, Jarrah began to answer. However, before he could get even one syllable out, a large man sporting a red mohawk hollered out, "Who cares who she is, Omaira! All that matters is that she's a looker". He leered at her from where he stood, licking his lips in anticipation.

At this point, Myron couldn't take how disgustingly wolffish he was being; especially since he was talking about someone she considered to be an older sister. But before she could snap something snarky at the large male, she felt a hand clasp onto her shoulder, stopping her. Looking up, she found Lo'Lo leaning over her as he flashed a wild grin over to Marid, the man sporting the mohawk.

"Oh? You think you can just steal the Cap'n's woman, Marid?", Lo'Lo challenged, his words sending a ripple of murmurs throughout the Corps.

"The Captain's _woman_?"

"Hey, Jarrah, is that true?"

"He's actually _with_ someone?"

"No way! I've never even seen her before!"

Lo'Lo grinned at the slight ruckus he made, standing up to his full height. He stared down at Marid, daring him to take up his challenge - to take up a challenge against their leader.

Looking at Marid's shaken form, Myron let out a soft chuckle under her breath. Feeling more pressure from the hand on her shoulder, she looked to her right as Lo'Lo leaned down to her level, grinning wildly.

' _So the oaf_ can _think',_ she thought amusedly.

Myron was knocked out of her thoughts when she noticed the murmurs around them were becoming more and more doubtful about Lo'Lo's words.

"Nah. There's definitely no way"

"Come on, Lo'Lo! Why are you messing with us!"

"The Captain hasn't been interested in ages. Why would he be now?"

Nods and murmurs of agreement seemed to follow each time someone spoke up about the slim chances Aella was the "Captain's woman".

Growing tired of their denial, Myron finally spoke up. "Oh please. Unless you guys want your heads cut off by Barbatos, I suggest you believe it", she snapped, playing with her hair, "She's off limits".

"Oh come on Myron, don't tell me you actually believe that bull", Zafir, a young Fanalis boy with short hair, scoffed humorously.

"You guys would believe that 'bull' too if you just used your eyes", Myron rolled her eyes and lazily gestured to her brother and childhood friend.

Before anyone else could retort, a light scream caught their attention, making them all turn towards the source. Muu was walking towards them, laughing loudly while holding a white and slightly blue bundle over his shoulder.

Myron squinted, trying to figure out what her brother was holding. After noticing the bundle squirm and a head of black hair appear from behind Muu, Myron's eyes widened and she hung her head in defeat. "He has no tact", she groaned, massaging her temples.

Her partner laughed loudly next to her, slapping her on the back in amusement, "That's our Captain, alright!", he exclaimed.

At this point, Muu had finally reached them and waved amicably; as if there was nothing wrong with what he was doing. Stopping where most of the members were situated, he set Aella down - who, unfortunately, was thrown over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes - and proceeded to greet his kinsmen.

"Hey, guys!", Muu grinned excitedly.

Despite being set down, Aella still found herself to be quite dizzy from having her blood flow to her head more than usual. So after staggering a little and clutching her head with her right hand while her left clutched Muu's upper arm for balance, Aella decided to properly introduce herself.

Bowing low first, she looked up at them with a large smile, "Hello, I'm Aella, Lady Scheherazade's adopted daughter. It's nice to finally meet you all! Muu's told me a lot about you."

Before anyone could respond, a flash of red bounced from the back of the group and headed straight for Aella.

"Miss!", Aella turned towards the source of the dragged-out word to see Jarrah barreling straight at her. However, before he could successfully tackle her - whether purposefully or just out of excitement - Aella sidestepped and caught him in a headlock.

"Ha! Jarrah! I was wondering where you were! I guess that _was_ you in the middle of the brawl!", Aella laughed out and tightened her grip on the young Fanalis; the innocent and sweet image the Fanalis Corps originally had of her, shattered.

Myron looked around, feeling the air around her comrades change. In place of their hesitation and skepticism now stood surprise and something akin to pride. W hether it was the way their leader behaved towards this newcomer or the fact that she's Lady Scheherazade daughter - or even the fact that she had enough spunk to headlock a Fanalis -, Myron had to admit that Aella had effectively shut them all up.

Aella laughed with Myron and Lo'Lo as they walked back towards the palace, reminiscing about particular occurrences that happened during Aella's first encounter with the Fanalis Corps.

"Ha! You should've seen the look on all their faces when you headlocked Jarrah, Miss!", Lo'Lo guffawed while making an array of surprised and blank faces that Aella could only assume were Lo'Lo's impressions of said faces.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure I witnessed the makings of love at first sight for half of our men", Myron chimed in and smirked, "Plus, it doesn't help that you were _so_ nice to them. Wait until they see your true colors!" Myron nudged Aella playfully as she laughed.

Lo'Lo came over and nudged Aella on her other side, the two Fanalis boxing her in. Aella laughed loudly and put her hands up in defense, looking from Myron to Lo'Lo and back. "What did you expect me to do? It was my first time meeting them, it's only natural that I make a good first impression on them! Especially since Muu speaks so highly of them. And even more so with the fact that they prove that the Fanalis aren't extinct", Aella reasoned calmly. But before the two redheads could retort, she suddenly stopped and faced Myron. "Wait. What do you mean ' _true colors'_!? That makes me sound two-faced, Myron!", she laughed, playfully shoving the other woman.

"What? It's true", Myron grinned, taking Aella's playful punches to her arms.

"No it's not! That is definitely not true!"

"Sorry, Missy. But Myron's gotta be right on that one", Lo'Lo teased and pulled Aella into a headlock.

The three continued walking that way, teasing and joking with each other, until they reached the palace where they stayed. While the rest of the Fanalis Corps stayed in barracks a little ways away from the palace, Lo'Lo, Myron, and Muu stayed within the palace like Aella. Muu and Myron were allowed to because of their Alexius bloodline, and Lo'Lo was allowed because of his long history and loyalty to the two and Aella. The four of them had, after all, grown up together.

When the three arrived at the crossroads where they would be taking separate routes to get to their rooms, Aella turned to them and asked, "Oh, by the way, do you guys know when Muu will be getting back? I needed to talk to him, but the whole meeting with the Fanalis Corps distracted me".

The two Fanalis were already on their respective ways to their rooms when they Aella's inquiry. They turned back towards her and Myron looked up in thought.

"Hmm...I don't know Aella. Back in the Colosseum, Brother just told us to go on ahead of him. Something about needing to tell the rest of the Corps something…?", she replied, narrowing her eyes as she tried to remember.

Next to her, Lo'Lo waved nonchalantly as he turned back in the direction of his room, "Yeah, our leader probably won't be back until late at night. You should just go to sleep and tell him tomorrow when you see him", he added, walking back to his room. Myron took this as her due to head back as well, leaving Aella in thought.

' _Tomorrow, huh?'_ , she sighed and ran a hand through her hair, ' _I hope they'll forgive me for this…'_

After organizing her things for her trip to Sindria - which was quite easy since she hadn't even unpacked from her last mission - Aella headed to the palace seamstress to pick something up. She had sent a messenger with a design of a stola while she was out with Muu so that it would be ready by the the end of the day. Lucky for her, the palace's seamstress was always recruited for being efficient, taking time and quality into account.

Walking into the firelit, but still dim, workroom, Aella found the seamstress finishing up some final details of her stola. Looking at it with pride, she was glad that her design worked out so well. With the dress she received that day in mind, Aella designed something more equipped for traveling. It was almost exactly the same, with the white to light blue gradient of the cloth and the dark blue sash around her waist. But what really made the difference was the style. While the dress was an elaborate and more elegant design, the stola was much more casual and flexible. There was a slit up to her left thigh and it was much more loose around her torso. After admiring it a bit more, she thanked the seamstress and went back to her room to change.

Inspecting her reflection in her mirror, Aella found that the stola fit perfectly. She stretched a bit to test out whether or not she could move in it well enough. To her satisfaction, the stola still held the elegance of the dress it was based on and now had the mobility she needed for convenience's sake.

"Nice!", the ravenette grinned at her stola once again, "beautiful and badass!", she commented excitedly. Aella looked at her reflection once again, taking in her appearance as a whole. She definitely represented a world traveler, by the looks of it. On her right upper arm she wore a snake armlet she received from Heliohapt, her stola and gladiator sandals obviously reminiscent of Reim, elegant bangles from Kou, and other distinctly foreign trinkets.

However, when her metallic blue eyes settled on the necklace between her collarbones, Aella couldn't help but feel like she should've told them she was leaving. She couldn't help but feel like maybe she was betraying them by leaving again and not telling anyone.

She continued to stare at the necklace in her reflection sadly until she suddenly slapped both her hands onto her cheeks. "Now's not the time, Aella!", she quietly exclaimed to herself and looked out to the night sky, "It looks like it's about midnight...probably a good time to say my farewells to Lady Scheherazade and get going…"

With a last shake of her head, she headed out of her room, her bags in tow.

' _This is my duty. I owe at least this much to Mother'_

Lady Scheherazade turned away from the ocean when she heard soft footsteps approaching behind her. In the moonlight, she saw her daughter, so regal and so poised - just like she taught her - yet so...sorrowful.

Looking up to see the golden-haired woman, Aella smiled brightly and ran over to hug her. "Mother!", she exclaimed with childlike glee, "You didn't have to come out here! I was going to come to you after putting my things on the ship".

"It's no crime to come and look at the ocean in my own country, Aella", she smiled, "And it's even less of a crime to come see my daughter off", Lady Scheherazade justified, smoothing Aella's hair gently.

The two women stood there, one radiating the beauty of sunlight and the other emitting soft and gentle moonlight. "You take care, Aella", Lady Scheherazade spoke up quietly, "I sense something big will come to pass...the Rukh are behaving restlessly". She looked out to the ocean, a frown etched on her soft features.

Aella followed her gaze, turning back seriously she bowed down to one knee with an arm across her chest, "Of course, Lady Scheherazade. I will finish this mission to its completion".

Lady Scheherazade turned to Aella's bowed form and touched her shoulder gently, making Aella look up. The High Priestess turned away once more, a sad smile on her face, "You could've said goodbye, Aella…"

The ravenette stood up, shocked. She struggled with a response for a couple seconds, and looked down sadly.

"I-"

"Lady Aella! We're all set and ready to go here!", interrupted the captain of the ship, knocking her out of her thoughts.

She picked up all her things that she had set down and gave a slight bow to Lady Scheherazade before running up to the ship.

Lady Scheherazade stood in front of the large window, looking at nothing in particular. Aella had set sail about an hour ago, but she couldn't find it in herself to rest.

"Muu...so _this_ is what you truly want", she breathed in, a flow of Rukh surrounding her, "I'm glad".

In her hands was a hastily written and slightly crumpled letter from none other than the Captain of the Fanalis Corps himself. Lady Scheherazade lifted it up to her face once again, reading the words inscribed onto the pale paper.

" _To her High Priestess, Lady Scheherazade,_

 _I've noticed something - something I know has to be done - but something I regrettably wish doesn't need to happen. I have already spoken to Myron and Lo'Lo, as well as the rest of them, about the circumstances, so the Fanalis Corps will be handled appropriately. I will gladly take any consequences you deem necessary upon my return. But with all due respect, and the utmost amount of respect I have for you, Lady Scheherazade…"_

Lady Scheherazade read the last bit and smiled lovingly, tracing the words with her fingers.

"When will those kids ever learn?"

Aella climbed out of bed after trying - rather unsuccessfully - to sleep for about an hour. She couldn't help but be filled with regret.

' _Lady Scheherazade was right...ugh, why didn't I at least_ tell _them I was leaving again! They're definitely going to hate me this time'_ , she thought as she got up to the deck.

She approached the edge of the ship and rested her elbows on it.

"Ugh! Why am I so stupid!", she exclaimed, dropping down roughly so her head and arms were resting on the edge lamely.

"I don't think anyone could solve that mystery, Aella. After all, your stupidity is legendary".

Still slacked on the edge of the boat, Aella huffed bitterly, "Oh shut up, M-".

' _Wait-'_ , with a start, Aella jumped up and turned around to stare at the man behind her.

"W-what...What are you-", Aella began, but her mouth seemed to be working just as fast - or rather, just as slow - as her brain. In front of her was the red hair and eyes she knew so well, the tall build that always towered over her, the source of the voice that she would never forget. There was no mistaking it. In front her was…

"...Muu", she was finally able to breathe out.

" _...But with all due respect, and the utmost amount of respect I have for you, Lady Scheherazade, I just..."_

The man grinned at the sound of his name and stepped closer, so as to prove he wasn't some hallucination or mirage.

"Hey", he greeted cheerfully.

This was enough for Aella. She reached her limit. All the regret and sadness that she let build up that day began to flow out of her. Before either of them realized it, Aella had dashed over and hugged Muu as she sobbed into his chest.

Muu widened his eyes in surprise, one arm still in mid-wave. After his mind settled down, he looked down gently and put an arm around her waist in return while the other patted her head soothingly.

" _...I just can't let her go. Not again._

 _ Your_ _most loyal servant and Captain of the Fanalis Corps,_

 _ Muu_ _Alexius"_


	8. Capitolo Otto (VIII)

**Capitolo Otto (VIII):** **Giorni Nautici |** _ **Nautical Days**_

Footsteps could be heard on the hollow floor of the ship's deck as the sharp ringing of bells sounded, signaling the appearance of land in the distance. It was only just past dawn, but Aella had bounded for the bow of the ship the second she heard the deep echoing of bells, giving rushed greetings and apologies along the way. Reaching her destination, Aella squinted her eyes in hopes of seeing the beautiful, and quite legendary, island-kingdom of Sindria. Although Aella had the chance to visit said kingdom, she ended up becoming quite disappointed since the famed Conqueror of the Seven Seas and his Eight Generals seemed to be missing. Hence, her fruitless hunt for information on Sindria and it's movements.

The ravenette sighed as she relaxed onto the wooden edge of the bow, taking in the fresh, salty smell of the ocean below her. She wrapped her shawl around her, feeling the chill of the early breeze as she gazed at their long-awaited destination.

Muu awoke to the sound of bustling footsteps, knowing it could only mean one thing: they were getting ready to dock. Resting his forearms on the floor, the redhead lifted himself up to glance over the cot that was situated next to him. Due to his unexpected and sudden decision to join Aella, the crew wasn't able to accommodate him fully. But luckily, the two didn't have a problem rooming together in the cabin that the captain had prepared for Aella - even though he had to sleep on the floor - because of their sleepovers as kids. Muu was relieved to find that she hadn't grown out of that careless comfort she had around him and Myron.

Now looking over said girl's bed, Muu smiled, realizing that _she_ was one of the bustling footsteps that had woken him up. After strapping on his aurelian armor, Muu leisurely walked up to the deck - no rush in his step.

He walked at a lazy pace, yawning every once in awhile, and with a slight drag of his feet. As he drew nearer to the deck, he could see the bright yellow glow the sunlight was creating off of the ship's shiny surface. He heard the liveliness of the crew in their preparation to dock.

Amongst all the sounds and the blinding sunlight, he managed to see her - to see Aella leaning up against the rim of the ship in an awe-inspired daze.

Getting to be much warmer, Aella had discarded her shawl and rested the palms of her hands on the wood of the ship as she leaned over to look at the ocean. Although she would still be surrounded by the ocean when they docked onto Sindria, experiencing the movement of the waves as they carried you somewhere had always been what the ravenette truly loved. And, in a way, she'd miss it once she got onto land. Probably an effect from all those years of traveling and voyaging the world.

She closed her eyes, feeling the ocean breeze gently caressing her cheeks and the warmth of the sun seeping into her skin; listening to faint clamor of crowds on the approaching island.

"You'll fall that way, you know", keeping her eyes closed, Aella smiled gently at the deep voice that appeared next to her. If there was once phrase that could sum up their voyage together, it would those six words.

 _Aella stood on the bow of the boat leaning over the moving waters with only a rope to keep her from falling. She had heard of many stories, particularly that of Sinbad, depicting the hero doing this exact same thing. So, needless to say, the young woman felt inclined to try it...but it was easier said than done._

 _The ravenette found that the wood of the bow wasn't exactly a smooth platform and that the unpredictable waters of the ocean were quite difficult to deal with when trying to find your balance._

 _But, nevertheless, she kept trying._

 _After minutes of trying to stabilize herself atop the front of the ship, she was finally able to stand there and enjoy it. Finally getting over the challenge of balancing herself, she now understood why it was such a romanticized thing. With the wind gently hitting her and blowing through her hair, she felt like she could fly._

" _Careful. Looks like you could fall any second now", a loud voice said behind her. With a start, Aella nearly let go of the rope that was really the only thing that was keeping her on that boat - because it's not like her balance was really going to help her now that she'd lost it in her surprise._

 _With an awkward flapping of arms and writhing around to keep herself from plunging into the depths of the ocean and inevitably her death, Aella was able to get off of the bow and onto the floor of the ship's deck._

 _Catching her breath and steadying her heart beat, Aella rounded on the redhead that nearly killed her._

 _On seeing her fuming face, Muu put his hands up in surrender, pursing his lips in an attempt to keep him from bursting out in laughter._

 _Narrowing her eyes at him for a few seconds, the woman decided it wasn't worth it and sighed. She walked past him, hearing Muu's slightly heavy footsteps following behind her._

" _...I did tell you to be careful", Muu grinned, leaning over Aella to look at her face._

 _From below the deck, the crew could only recall hearing a distant thud, followed by a huffing Aella down the stairs._

 _It was night already, and the sky was absolutely clear. The sight of glistening stars contrasting against the dark blue sky was just mesmerizing. Aella, having had only the company of the stars on some lonely nights, took refuge in them now. Wanting to get a closer look at them, she started to climb up to the Crow's Nest, where the lookout is usually situated._

 _Almost reaching the top, her foot slipped causing her to fall until she was able to grab hold of a rope. She grunted as she tried to regain her footing._

" _Oh, yeah. You'll definitely fall that way."_

 _Aella peeked down, seeing an amused Muu with his arms crossed over his chest._

 _The ravenette sighed exasperatedly, "Well, if you know I'm gonna fall...Mind lending me a little help, then?"_

 _The ravenette closed her eyes in slight relief, but after a few seconds of not hearing a response from the young Fanalis captain, Aella looked down. All she saw was him just grinning innocently at her. Not making any signs of movement. Starting to feel the strain on her arms from hanging on to the rope for too long without any support, she grit her teeth, "Well?"_

 _Still grinning at her, Muu uncrossed his arms and placed them on his hips, "I'm trying to prove a point here, Aella. I'm not letting you off that easy."_

 _And so, Aella had a long night of trying to get down from the post leading up to the Crow's Nest, no help from a certain redhead. But she had to give him something, he did actually wait for her to get down._

 _It was one particularly hot morning when the crew, Aella, and Muu were having a cleaning day for the ship. After trying to get all the high places, whether on a stool or supported by ropes - as always -, and failing due to the pestering of a certain man, Aella sat in a shady part of the deck watching Muu take over her chores._

 _Glad to be out of the heat, but still irked at Muu's constant observations and predictions on the likelihood of Aella falling down, she was suddenly struck with a "bright" idea._

 _Muu was on a stool, leaning over a part of the ship when he suddenly felt his support knocked out from under him. Literally. He instinctively grasped onto the edge of the surface he was cleaning, now hanging off of it._

" _Careful there, Muu. Looks like you're about to fall."_

 _Turning his head as much as he could, he spotted the ravenette smirking at him smugly. Before he could retort, she waltzed over to help a crew member with making lunch._

Grinning at the memories, Aella turned to Muu as she jumped up to sit on the edge of the ship.

"Come on, Muu. I thought we've been through this. It's not like I've actually fa-"

At that moment, the captain had the anchor dropped as they began to dock, shocking the ship and causing it to jolt. Muu saw her start to fall and reached out for her, missing her by a hair's width.

"Aella!"

Aella gasped for air as she was pulled to the surface of the water and heaved up to the pier. She crouched down and began to violently cough out water - the shock of falling had made her swallow water upon impact.

After a moment of trying to collect herself, the ravenette began to chuckle. Looking to Muu who was resting on his forearms to catch his breath. She grinned and said, "Well that was refreshing."

Muu opened his eyes and glanced at her, his lips in a straight line and his eyes unamused.

Aella blinked in confusion as she sat up. She had expected a jolly and hearty laugh to join her in response to this rather ironic turn of events. However, before she could verbalize her concerns, the sound of rushing footsteps caught her attention.

"Miss Aella! Muu! Are you two alright?" Aella took the towel held out to her by a freckled young man - whom she recognized to be Sinbad's right-hand man and somewhat of a secretary, Ja'far - with gratitude.

Before she could answer, however, a boisterous voice bellowed out "I see you enjoy the ocean as much as Lady Scheherazade has told me!"

A horror-stricken Ja'far turned to his king, exasperatedly. "Sin! You can't just say that to a visiting envoy of the Reim Empire! Much less when she's the daughter of the most influential person in the country!"

To be honest, the ravenette felt a little bad for Ja'far. He seemed like he'd pass out from his king's reputable audacity. Or, at the very least, have his jaw come unhinged. Thus, she spoke up whilst placing a comforting hand on the ex-assassin's shoulder.

"You really needn't worry yourself over this, Ja'far. I'm not one for formalities anyway," Aella gently stated, smiling softly at the silver-haired man.

She felt his shoulders slump as he relaxed after hearing her words - only to stiffen once again at the voice of the purple-haired man himself.

"You heard the lady Ja'far," Sinbad strode over and clamped Ja'far's shoulder, "Don't be such a worrywart!"

At Sinbad's statement, Ja'far scoffed and retorted, "If I wasn't 'such a worrywart', you'd only be ruling over a pile of rocks."

Sinbad opened his mouth in attempt to make a cheeky retort when a voice interrupted them.

"King Sinbad, it's a pleasure to be welcomed back to Sindria," Muu greeted, giving a slight bow. "Although, I do apologize for our current state," he continued as he sheepishly scratched the back of his neck.

Aella immediately followed suit and gave a deep bow, "Yes! I apologize for not saying so sooner, King Sinbad, but thank you for allowing us to stay here on behalf of the Reim Empire. And I would also like to apologize for our unseemly appearances."

Sinbad could only blink at the sudden show of propriety and diplomacy by his two visitors. He soon recovered, nonetheless, and raised a hand to signify his acknowledgement. "Please, forgive _me_ for not properly welcoming you two. As always, it's a pleasure to have you here Muu. And, it's an honor to officially meet the daughter of Lady Scheherazade, Miss Aella."

"Please, call me Aella," the young woman smiled gently. With that, Muu continued on to brief Sinbad on details about their stay; discussing matters that needed to be deliberated more at a later date.

Aella stood in her place, observing this new, diplomatic side of her childhood friend. In all honesty, Aella had nearly forgotten her red-haired companion was even there. He'd been unusually silent since their hosts had arrived. ' _Speaking of hosts…'_

Aella peeked around Sinbad, who was standing directly in front her, at the group of people standing behind seemed familiar to her, but she really only knew what Ja'far looked like.

Noticing her change of focus, Sinbad looked over his shoulder at the people behind him. "Of course! I nearly forgot," he turned his body so Aella had an unobstructed view of the seven people who had been eagerly awaiting their own introductions.

"These," he gestured widely with his left arm, "are the rest of Sindria's Eight Generals. This is -"

But before he could begin making introductions, a tuft of white hair and bright green eyes caught her attention.

"...Sharr?", the ravenette questioned hesitantly, but with apparent eagerness.

The typically nonchalant and disinterested Heliohaptan looked up at the sound of his uncommon nickname. Seeing a lean, attractive young woman staring at him expectantly, Sharrkan smirked, _'Well now, I didn't think the famed princess of Reim would be so forward.'_

Sharrkan would pride himself in his ability to seduce women, but this was on a whole other level. He opened his mouth with the full intention of flirting back with the black-haired beauty, when a thought occurred to him.

' _Wait...Sharr?'_ , he paused in his advance, and narrowed his eyes at her.

Seeing the wheels turning in his head, Aella smiled, confident he was beginning to understand. She straightened up and gave him a wave.

And, almost immediately, Sharrkan widened his eyes in realization, _'No way!'_

With a large grin he ran over to the young woman and picked her up in a bone-crushing hug.

"Aella!", said woman grinned happily as he spun her around in excitement.

After setting her down, his eyes displaying a child-like glow that she remembered so well, he grinned, "I almost didn't recognize you!"

The ravenette gave a flattered smile as she shyly scratched the back of her neck, "Yeah, well I haven't seen you since I was-"

"When'd you get so short?", the white-haired man guffawed. It's true, when they last met when she was twenty, she had been a good five inches or so taller than him. But now it seemed like Sharrkan gained the upper hand in growth. In spite of the partial truth in Sharrkan's words, Aella could help twitching a little at his comment.

She smiled at him gently and gestured for him to come closer. When he leaned down to her height, she wrapped her arms around his neck in a choke hold, as she continued to smile gently.

"And when did you get so impudent, Sharrkan?", the man struggled in her grip as he tried to pry her arm away from his neck, "If I remember correctly, you were a very honest and respectable little boy last time we met."

As Aella continued to berate the younger man, the crowd behind her could only stare in shock at the unexpected interaction.

"Did you...know about this?", an unusually shocked Sinbad questioned the redhead next to him.

"Actually, now that I think about it, Aella and I didn't really have time for her to tell me about what she'd been up to for the past ten years. So...no", Muu answered truthfully, albeit simplistically since he was also shocked by the sudden turn of events.

Although a part of him was left feeling envious. He was overjoyed at her return home, that he hadn't realistically thought about her time away. It's easy to think that ten years is a short time when you finally have them back, but he was starting to realize that so much time _has_ passed between them.

His eyes settled on her, who had finally released the poor boy from her death grip.

The Fanalis scanned her appearance, taking her in completely for the first time since she returned.

She did, in fact, really change since the last time they saw each other. He could definitely say that Aella had become much more fit, gaining a lean and healthy figure from years of travelling and who knows what other physically laborious activities.

He could also say that she had actually _grown up_. Muu remembered Aella as a very boyish, and blatantly unfeminine, girl when she had left. But now, even he had to admit she was rather beautiful.

Before Muu could think over the matter any further, though, his attention was caught by a slight cough.

Sinbad grinned, giving a sidelong glance at the Reim Empire's famed Fanalis. After hearing Muu's response to his earlier question, Sinbad had questioned him on their relationship.

However, somewhere along the line, it seems as though his attention was shifted elsewhere.

' _Well, it's no matter. It seems as though I won't be needing his answer after all',_ the mischievous king smiled knowingly.

Satisfied with his newfound knowledge, Sinbad let out a cough to catch everyone's attention.

"Muu, Aella, let us continue introductions after you've changed into some dry clothes and settled down", he smiled graciously, "We've prepared a small banquet for dinner."


End file.
